Joseph



- -& (No Model.)

J. APPLEBY.

HOLDER FOR PENGILS AND OTHER IMPLEMENTS.

Patented July 20, 1886..

N. PEYERs Phoko-Lilhugnpher. Wnhinflnlv. O. C.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

JOSEPH APPLEBY, OF BIRMINGHAM, ENGLAND.

HOLDER FOR PENCILS AND OTHER IMPLEMENTS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 346,014, dated July20,1886.

Application filed October 22, 1885. Serial No. 180,595. (No model.)

To aZZ whom it may concern.-

Be it known that LYJOSEPII APPLEBY, a subject of the Queen of England,residing at Birmingham, England, have invented certain new and usefulImprovements in Holders for Pencils and other lmplements fully describedand represented in the following specification and the accompanyingdrawings, forming a part of the same.

This invention relates to that class of cases or holders for pencils,knife-blades, toothpicks, pen-holders, and similar implements in whichthe implement when not in use is retracted or drawn within the holderand is protruded from the holder to be brought into position for use.

It is the object of the invention to produce a holder of this class inwhich the implement carried by the holder can be automatically protrudedand retracted with a positive action by the same operating devices,irrespective of the position in which the holder is heldthat is to say,whether with the open end downward or upward or in any intermediateinclined position.

As afull understanding of the invention can be best imparted by adetailed description of the construction and operation of the holder,such description will now be given, reference being had to theaccompanying drawings, in which, for the purpose of illustration, theholder is shown as containing an ordinary ever-pointed pencil.

In said drawings, Figure 1 is an elevation of the holder, showing thepencil protruded. Fig. 2 is a longitudinal section showing the parts inthe same position. Fig. 3 is an elevation, partly in section, showingthepencil retracted within the holder. Fig. 4 is a longitudinal sectionshowing the parts in the position they occupy just before the pencil isprotruded. Fig. 5 is an elevation, partly in section, showingthe partsin the position they occupyjustafterthepencilisprotruded. Fig. (i is asimilar view showing the parts in the position they occupy just afterthe pencil is retracted within the holder. Fig. 7 is a longitudinalsection showing the parts in the same position. Fig. 8 is across-section taken on the line 00 x of Fig. 7, looking toward the topof the holder; and Figs. 9 and 10 illustrate details, which will behereinafter referred to.

Referring to said drawings, it is to be understood that the implement a,which the holder is shown as carrying in the present case, is a pencilof the ordinary ever-pointed variety in which the lead is advanced bymeans of a screw as it is worn away in the act of writing.

The construction of this class of pencils is so well understood as torender any further description unnecessary.

The pencil or other implement, a, is attached to or carried by a head orblock, 15, which is arranged to slide freely in a conducting-tube, 16,which is of a length proportioned to the length of the implement whichthe holder is to contain. The conducting-tube 16 is provided with alongitudinal slot, 14:, through which projects a stud or pin, 9, whichis secured to the carrying-head 15. The slot 14 is of a length equal tothe movement which it is desired to give to the pencil in protruding itfrom and retracting it into the holder, and is provided at its oppositeends with locks 2 3, formed by lateral recesses. The conductingtube 16is also provided with a second longi tudinal slot, 18, through whichprojects a stud, 8, which is secured to a follower, 12,

which is arranged to slide freely in the upper end of the tube 16.

Between the follower 12 and the head 15 there is located theoperatingspring 11, which is of spiral form, and has one of its endsattached to the follower 12, while its other end is connected to thecarrying-head 15 by means of a loop, 10, which extends from the head andencircles the end 4. of the wire of which the spring is formed, as bestshown in Figs. 8 and 9. The loop 10 is of such size that it will read-.-i1y enter the space within the coil of the spring 11, as shown inFigs. 4. and 7. By means of this arrangement the end 4: of the spring 11is permitted to move freely in the loop 10, and thus afford a certainamount of lost motion between the head 15 and the spring. The purpose ofthis will appear when the operation of the holder is explained.

In assembling the parts the operating-spring 11 is given such an amountof torsion that wlieirtlie parts are in position the spring will alwaystend to turn the stud 9 in the direction of the recesses 2 3, so that assoon as the stud arrives at either end of the slot 14 it will at once bethrown into and held in the recess at that end of the slot, thus lockingthe head 15 in that position. The purpose of this will also appearwhenthe operation is explained. Outside of the conducting-tube there isfitted a tube or sleeve, 19, which I call the operating-tube, and whichis arranged to slide freely on the tube 16, but is rigidly connected tothe follower 12 by means of the stud 8. The operating-tube 19, whichextends beyond the upper end of the conducting-tube 16, is provided witha wide slot, 18, which extends longitudinally of the tube, and coincideswith the slot 14, although it is of somewhat greater length.

The upper end of the slot 18 is inclined, so as r to, form a cam, 17,for acting upon the stud 9, while its lower end terminates in a narrowoblique slot, 7, which is so cut as to form a shoulder, 6, which, whenthe parts are in their normal position, just registers with the open endof the recess 3 and a tooth or projection, 5, which extends to the edgeof the slot 14. The tube 19 is also provided with a slit, 24,

(see Fig. 10,) by which that portion of the tube to which the tooth 5 isattached is made to form a spring-ari'n, 25, which permits the tooth tobe raised slightly away from the tube 16, and causes it, when so raised,to return again when released. The purpose of this will appear when theoperation of the holder is described. It is to be remarked, in passing,however, that the spring-arm 25, carrying the tooth 5, may be a separatepiece attached to the'tube 19. The tubes 16 and 19 are both closed attheir upper ends, the former by a disk, which fits onto its end, and thelatter preferably by a cap, 20, which fits over its end, andextends'either insid'e 'or outside'of the outer sheath or casing of theholder. Between the closed ends of the tubes 16 19 there is located aspiral pressure-spring, 21, which is of greater strength than the spring11, and has a tendency to draw the tubes 16 19 apart, and thus hold thestud 8 against the upper end of the slot 13.

The parts thus far described constitute the operating parts of theholder, but the holder will usually be provided with an outer sheath orcasing, as 22, which may be made of any suitable material or combinationof materials, and will be rigidly secured to the tube 16 by solder orotherwise, as indicated at 23.

The operation of theholder thus constructed is as follows: hen it isdesired to protrudev the pencil for use, pressure is applied to the endof the operating-tube 19, so as to compress the spring 21 and move saidtube downward over the tube 16, as shown in Fig. 4. As the tube 19 isthus moved along the tube 16, the stud 8 will be moved with it along theslot 13, thereby moving the follower 12 toward the head 15, so as tocause the operating-spring 11 to move along over the loop 10, and abutagainst the head 15 and be slightly compressed, as also shown in Fig. 4.It will be observed that during this operation the head 15 remainsstationary, it being held by the stud 9,which stud 9, when the cam willby reason of its inclination move the stud out of the recess 2 into theslot 14, as shown by the dotted lines in Fig. 5, and as soon as thistakes place the spring 11, which has been compressed between the head 15and follower 12 will be released and allowed to expand. The force of theoperating-spring 11 in expanding will cause the head 15 and the stud 9to traverse the entire length of the slot 14, thus protruding the pencilto the proper extent, and as soon as the stud arrives at the end of theslot the torsion of the spring 11,which, as before stated, tends to holdthe stud against the side of the slot in which the recesses 2 3 areformed, will throw the stud into the recess 3, as shown in Fig. 5. Thepressure being then removed from the tube 19, the spring 21 will expandand draw the tube and the follower 12 back to their original position.As the tube 19 is moved back to its original position the tooth 5 willstrike against thelower side of the stud 9, but the end of the stud isinclined toward the lower end of the holder, so that the tooth beingmounted upon the springarm 25, as before stated, will be raised by thestud and will pass over it, thus leaving the stud in the recess 3. asshown in Fig. 2, where it will be retained and locked by the shoulder 6,which extends across the open end of the recess, as shown in Fig. 3. Thehead 15 being thus held in the position to which it has been moved, andthe pressure-spring 21 being stronger than the Operating-spring 11, thefollower 12 will as it is moved'back with'the'tube by the expansion ofthe spring 21, as just stated, expand the spring 11 beyond its normallength as shown in Fig. 2, so that it will draw upon the head 15, aslong as the pencil remains protruded.

When it is desired to again retract the penoil within the holder,pressure will be again applied to the end of the tube 19, so as tocompress the spring 21 slightly and move the tube from the positionshown in Figs. 2 and 3 to the position shown in Figs. 6 and 7. This willmove the shoulder 6 away'i'rom the end of the recess 3 and at the sametime cause the inclined side of the tooth 5 to act upon the abrupt upperside of the stud 9, so as to move the stud along the inclined slot 7 outof the recess 3 and into the slot 14, as shown by dotted lines in Fig.6. As soon as this takes place the operating-spring 11 will be free tocontract, and in so doing will move the stud and the head 15 back thewhole length of the slot 14, thus retracting the pencil within theholder, and assoon as the stud arrives at the end of the slot thetorsion of the spring 11 will throw it into the recess 2, as shown inFigs. 3, 6, and 7. The pressure being then removed from the end of theoperating-tube 19, the spring 21 will expand and restore the tube to theposition shown'in Fig. 3.

Although, as shown herein, a pencil is car- ICO ried by the head 15,itis to be understood that any other suitable implement-as aknifeblade,a tooth-pick, or a pen-holdermay be carried by the head. Thecarrying-head 15 need not always be of the length herein shown. In somecases it may be made shorter, and if the form of the i in plementcarried by the holder is such as to permit it, the head may be entirelyomitted and the stud 9 and the loop 10 be attached directly to theimplement itself. The head 15 and the follower 12 may be either solid ortubular in form. In some cases the loop 10 may be omitted and theoperatingspring 11 attached directly to the head 15 or to the implementcarried by the holder. In such case there will of course be no lostmotion between the spring and the head, and

'as a consequence the movement of the tube 19 will in most cases have tobe increased. So, also, in some cases the follower 12 may be, omittedthe operating-spring 11 being connected directly to the stud 8. In suchcase it will be preferable to provide the conducting tube 16 with two ofthe slots 13, so that the stud can extend entirely through the tube 16and have both of its ends secured to the operating-tube 19. So, also, insome cases the tube 16 may be made to terminate just above the end ofthe slot 14, the lower end of thepressure-spring 21 being made to restagainst a stud or pin which passes through a slot or slots in theoperating-tube 19, and is secured to the outer sheath or easing.

A part of the advantages of the invention may be realized by omittingthe pressurespring 21 and moving the operating-tube in both directionsby hand. In such case there would be sufficient friction between theoperating and conducting tubes to hold the former in any position towhich it was moved. So, also,a part of the advantages of the inventionmay be realized when the means for disengaging the stud 9 from the locks2 3 is differ- I ent from that shown.

What I claim is- 1. The combination, with the implement a or itscarrying-head 15 and the longitudinally-moving operating-tube, of theoperating-spring 11, having one end connected to the implement or itshead and the other to the operating-tube, whereby the spring'iscompressed by the movement of the tube in one direction and expanded bythe movement of the tube in the opposite direction, so as to bothprotrude and. retract the implement, substantially as described.

2. The combination, with the implement a or its carrying-head 15and thelongitudinally-moving operatingtube, of the operating-spring 11, havingone end connected to the implement or its head and the other to theoperating tube, whereby the spring is compressed by the movement of thetube in one direction and expanded by the movement of the tube in theopposite direction, so as to both protrude and retract the implement,and the pressure-spring 21 for restoring the operating-tube to itsnormal position, substantially as described.

3. The combination, with the implement a or its earryinghead 15, havingthe stud 9, of the conducting-tube 16, having the slot 14 and locks 2 3,into which the stud 9 extends, the operating tube 19, and thelongitudinallymoving operating-spring 11, having one end connected tothe operating-tube and the other end to the implement or itscarrying-head, substantially as described.

4. The combination, with the implement a or its carrying-head 15, havingthe stud 9, of

the conducting-tube 16, having the slot 14 and locks 2 3, into which thestud 9 extends, the operating-tube 19, the longitudinally-movingoperating spring 11, having one end connected to the operating-tube andthe other end to the implement or its carrying-head, and thepressurespring 21, arranged to restore the operating-tube to its normalposition, substantially as described.

5. The combination, with the implement a or its carrying-head 15, havingthe stud 9, of the conducting tube 16, having the slot 14: and locks 23, into which the stud 9 extends, the longitudinally-movingoperating-tube 19, having the cam 17 for removing the stud 9 from thelock 2, and the spring-tooth 5 for removing the stud from the lock 3,and the operating-spring 11, having one end connected to theoperating-tube and the other end to the implement or its carrying-head,substantially as described.

6. The combination, with the implement a or its carrying-head 15, havingthe stud 9, of the conducting-tube 16, having the slot 14 and locks 2 3,into which the stud 9 extends, the longitudinally moving operating tube19, having the cam 17 for removing the stud 9 from the lock 2, and thespring-tooth 5 for re moving the stud from the lock 3, theoperating-spring 11, having one end connected to the operating-tube andthe other end to theimplement or its carrying-head, and thepressurespring 21, arranged to restore the operating tube to its normalposition, substantially as described.

7. The combination, with the implement a or its carrying-head 15, havingthe stud 9, of the conducting-tube 16, having the slot 14. and locks 23, into which the stud 9 extends, the operating-tube 19, having the cam17 for removing the stud 9 from the lock 2, and the spring-tooth 5 forremoving the stud from the lock 3, and the operatingspring 11, havingone end connected to the operating-tube and the other end to theimplement or carryinghead by means of the loop 10, in which the springispermitted to move so as to allow lost motion between the spring andtheimplement or its head, substantially as described.

8. The combination, with the implement a or its carrying-head 15, havingthe stud 9, of the conductingtube 16, having the slot 14 and locks 2 3,into which the stud 9 extends, the operating-tube 19, having the cam 17for re In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand in the presenceof two subscribing Witnesses.

JOSEPH APPLEBY.

Witnesses:

J. W MILLIGAN,

Secretary, THEODORE D. NEAL, v

.ZlIGTOhCLHflS Clerk, Both of 36 L(lncasterSt., Birmingham, England.

